Our strategies and plans

Business plan process

Every five years water companies submit a business plan to the regulator, Ofwat, which sets out what they hope to achieve in the following five years, and how all the costs involved are to be paid for.

Ofwat scrutinises each plan and decides what customers pay for each of the five years.

In April 2013 we merged with Cambridge Water and on 2 December 2013 we published a single business plan for the period 2015-20, which covers both regions.

The business plan is a result of extensive customer researchreceived during nearly two years of work, which has seen 4,500 customers, including 800 business customers, consulted during research studies.

South Staffs Water also set up and worked closely with a Customer Challenge Group, comprising representatives from stakeholders like the Consumer Council for Water, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and the Environment Agency, along with local councillors and business operators.